Updated 29 September 2025: BBC: Mahmood demands migrants earn right to settlement in UK
Migrants will have to prove they are contributing to society to earn the right to remain in the UK, the home secretary has said.
In her speech to the Labour conference, Shabana Mahmood outlined a series of new conditions migrants have to meet to qualify for indefinite leave to remain.
Under the proposals, legal migrants will have to learn English to a high standard, have a clean criminal record and volunteer in their community to be granted permanent settlement status.
Labour says the policy draws a clear dividing line between the government and Reform UK, which says it would abolish indefinite leave to remain.
The main theme of Labour’s conference is taking the fight to Reform UK, which is leading in UK-wide national opinion polls.